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2. Kumar Sangakkara 192 vs Australia (Warne-Muralitharan Trophy, Hobart, 2007)
Kumar Sangakkara
This comes so high up the list ahead of those double hundreds because it came chasing, and that too an impossible 500-plus total, almost helping Sri Lanka in going all the way. Australia eventually won the game, and also the series (2-0).
Australia came up with an impressive display of cricket, as a result of which they were able to set a stiff target of 507 for Sri Lanka to chase in the last innings of the match which started before lunch on day 4 itself. This was the occasion that Kumar Sangakkara chose to put up one of the most gritty displays of stroke play-in one of the most difficult situations for a batting side. He started slow, his half-century took more than a 100 balls to come batting alongside Atapattu, with whom he shared a 143-run stand. The hundred was completed relatively quickly with Jayasuriya at the other end. Day 4 ended when both of them were still there, and Sri Lanka had scored almost half the runs needed and looked like creating history on the final day.
But that was not to be. Jayasuriya was dismissed early the next day, after which the Lankans lost another 4 wickets within25 runs. Sangakkara was unaffected to say the least, and kept the runs coming with number 10 Lasith Malinga who complemented the wicket-keeper with a cameo of 42 runs (3 sixes). Sangakkara contributed 58 of the 74 runs in the stand, scoring at better than a run a ball keeping the situation in mind that needed some fast run scoring, Sri Lanka having only two wickets left. But luck favoured Australia, as he was given out edged on a Stuart Clark delivery that had only brushed his shoulder. Thus ended an innings that lasted 282 balls and saw 27 fours being hit, and took the hopes of a Sri Lankan win with it when it ended. Muralitharan and Malinga did have some fun batting for the last wicket as they added 46 runs in just 5 overs, but they could not prevent the inevitable as man of the match and man of the series Brett Lee hit the spinner’s stumps to give Australia victory by 96 runs.
